September 20, 2023
August 16, 2023
February 28, 2012
One of the most important parts of web design and development at Blend Interactive is what we call our Audiences and Outcomes process. The process – which borrows heavily from C. David Gammel’s Online and On Mission – helps determine site audiences and the expected outcomes of those audiences. It’s what drives decision making for […]
February 16, 2012
Earlier this month, Contents Magazine asked seven very smart people about their first principles – the things that ground every part of their work, whether in content or beyond. You should probably go read that. Then, Contents asked us to fill in the spaces by submitting our own answers to the question, “What are your […]
January 19, 2012
When we sign a contract for content work – whether it’s working with a client as a consultant or accepting a position within a large company – we do so with the expectation of deliverables. They are the things we make. They are often a symbol of milestone completion, or quarterly goal. They are CONCRETE. […]
November 9, 2011
The company website news feed. What gives, AMIRITE? Jewelry stores and celebrities and banks and pretty much everyone has a news feed and no one really stops and asks, “why do we have a news feed at all?” Or, more importantly, is having a news feed even something worth pursuing? An Onion article to this […]
October 13, 2011
The first rule of card sorting is… No. I can’t do it. I refuse to do the Fight Club joke. There are rules, though. Unwritten rules, yes, but rules all the same. And that first rule is the one we’re all taught to revere from the beginning: you don’t facilitate a remote card sort unless […]
September 2, 2011
No one likes email. If you say you like email, you are lying. If you say you’re NOT lying, that you really LOVE email and you love EVERYTHING that comes with it, you are obviously a robot. Or a cyborg. One of those. Because no one likes email – especially email that comes from a […]
July 25, 2011
Sara Wachter-Boettcher took my domain knowledge post one step further, diving into what we need to know about a company’s organizational structure. From her post, “Master of which domain? Industry vs. organizational knowledge:” Agencies have historically acted like suitors whenever a new client comes around. It’s all fluffy clouds and sparkles and sweet nothings in […]
July 19, 2011
Here’s what I’m not. I’m not a pipe fitter. I’m not a garage door salesman. I’m not a software engineer or a big box retail executive or a business journalist. I’m not a butcher, baker or candlestick maker. Damn it, Jim, I’m not a doctor NOR am I a mechanic. As content strategists, we are […]
June 15, 2011
Jared’s right. In the past two years I’ve seen talk of content strategy shift from “we need to do this now” to “we need to claim our space,” and the rush to define the industry has likewise shifted from “this is what we do” to “this is what we control.” One of the most frustrating […]
May 27, 2011
Methodology. An ugly word, to be sure. Cold and clinical, it marginalizes flexibility in the name of process. Gross. Yet, we all seek it out. We all want a methodology – a guide to doing what we are going to do. We want it for us. We want it for our clients. We want to […]
